Prat !

[nick mercedes]

Given this driver was driving dangerously, this would seem appropriate to involve the relevant service now, not a week next Tuesday.

Rover man supposedly cut someone up, not an emergancy, and really not a good idea to ring 999 in such an event.

I despair at the nation we have become sometimes...

 

[Gucci]

Rover man supposedly cut someone up, not an emergancy, and really not a good idea to ring 999 in such an event.

I despair at the nation we have become sometimes...

You'd be correct if Rover man simply cut someone up. As you'll re-read, his actions were multiple and persistent and therefore likely to cause an accident.

Letting him do as he wishes and turning a blind eye, would make me despair at the nation we'd become.

 

[219]

Rover man supposedly cut someone up, not an emergancy, and really not a good idea to ring 999 in such an event.

I despair at the nation we have become sometimes...

Nick - I despair at some of the things you write at times .

Rover man , in the space of three or four minutes

veered from a slip road across three lanes of motorway traffic braking hard to avoid hitting a van in lane two , then causing two vehicles in lane three to brake hard to avoid a collision as he cut in front of them

then he tailgated another car until it was able to move over into the already busy lane two

after that he tailgated another car until he came to the underpass , at which point he was able to cut in front of another car exiting from the left lane , used the slip road to undertake two lorries , then veered rapidly in front of them to return to the right lane ahead of two other cars

moments later he used the slip road joining from the right , accelerated along it until tailgating yet another car and remained there until 50 yds or so before the end of the slip road , at which point he forced his way back into the right hand lane of the main carriageway , causing other drivers to brake and sound their horns - this in contravention of a solid line dividing the two lanes at this point .

my final sight of him was tailgating and intimidating another driver to move out of the right lane into the still busy lane to the left and speeding off into the distance .

There is nothing 'supposed' about any of this , I clearly witnessed all of it .

Those who dial 999 when it is not an emergency could be preventing a genuine emergency call being answered. These include..... situations which require immediate police action.

There , in your own text , is all the justification needed for dialling 999

 

[nick mercedes]

Nick - I despair at some of the things you write at times .

Rover man , in the space of three or four minutes

999 is for **emergencies** not because you think someone is a crap driver.

Otherwise we'd all be ringing 999 everyday.

 

[Gucci]

 

[219]

999 is for **emergencies** not because you think someone is a crap driver.

Otherwise we'd all be ringing 999 everyday.

Nick , you seem to fail to grasp what is patently clear to everyone else who has contributed to this thread .

The guy was driving DANGEROUSLY .

This was not a single badly executed move , but an ongoing display of dangerous and reckless driving which showed every sign of continuing until he either crashed or reached his destination .

As it is , any single one of the things I witnessed would have been serious enough for him to have been stopped , and more than likely charged , had he been seen by a patrol . The fact that he drove as he did , with blatant disregard for the safety of other road users around him , never mind himself , and that this manner of driving was ongoing most certainly constitutes an emergency . If you don't think that this is any less of an emergency than , say , a maniac walking down the street waving a gun around - I don;t know what would ? By your token - just because he hadn't actually HIT someone , it wasn't an emergency ; neither , I suppose , would be the gunman until he actually SHOT someone ?

I see plenty of examples of poor judgement on the roads from day to day - usually someone making an isolated error which is unlikely to be repeated or continued - and does not warrant calling the police .

The episode I wrote about is something else entirely , believe me , I don't phone 999 lightly and it takes an extreme example of bad driving ( which this was ) before I would do so .

 

[jepho]

I don't phone 999 lightly and it takes an extreme example of bad driving ( which this was ) before I would do so .

Thank you for considering the other people who were ignored by the driver in question and for bringing his bad driving to the attention of the authorities. You are to be commended for taking the appropriate action.

It was Edward Burke who was credited with the aphorism... "All that is necessary for evil to succeed is that good men do nothing" and while we may not all agree about the ascription of the epithet 'evil' to the selfish and inconsiderate actions of the crazy driver; the point is well-made that if we do nothing then we will get the sort of society we truly deserve.

 

[nick mercedes]

Nick , you seem to fail to grasp what is patently clear to everyone else who has contributed to this thread .

The guy was driving DANGEROUSLY

The world is full of people who we might consider to be poor drivers, you can't dial 999 everytime you see such an example.

999 is for **emergencies** not for trying to dob someone in for driving badly.

"999 abusers facing fines for trivial phone calls"

"People who misuse the 999 service are being warned they could face a £80 fine or an antisocial behaviour order"

"A MAN with smelly feet and a woman with period pains who both dialled 999 for help are among those causing problems for the emergency services"

"How to report bad driving

If you have been involved in an incident of bad driving which has not ended in a collision, call 0845 8 505 505, or visit a local police station to report the incident.

You will need the following information:

The registration number of the other vehicle.
Details of an independent witness or witnesses.
You also must be prepared to go to court to support proceedings.
Police will decide if there is sufficient evidence of an offence which can be investigated. If further information is needed for an investigation, the complainant will be contacted by a member of the Roads Policing department."

HTH.

 

[trapperjohn]

The world is full of people who we might consider to be poor drivers, you can't dial 999 everytime you see such an example.

999 is for **emergencies** not for trying to dob someone in for driving badly.

"999 abusers facing fines for trivial phone calls"

"People who misuse the 999 service are being warned they could face a £80 fine or an antisocial behaviour order"

"A MAN with smelly feet and a woman with period pains who both dialled 999 for help are among those causing problems for the emergency services"

"How to report bad driving

If you have been involved in an incident of bad driving which has not ended in a collision, call 0845 8 505 505, or visit a local police station to report the incident.

You will need the following information:

The registration number of the other vehicle.
Details of an independent witness or witnesses.
You also must be prepared to go to court to support proceedings.
Police will decide if there is sufficient evidence of an offence which can be investigated. If further information is needed for an investigation, the complainant will be contacted by a member of the Roads Policing department."

HTH.

So collison first. OK I'll remember that.

 

[nick mercedes]

So collison first. OK I'll remember that.

That's the one, if you crash and someone does a runner or is badly injured ring 999, otherwise follow the police advise:

"If you have been involved in an incident of bad driving which has not ended in a collision, call 0845 8 505 505, or visit a local police station to report the incident."

Saves the 999 people having to deal with non emergencies.

 

[219]

The world is full of people who we might consider to be poor drivers, you can't dial 999 everytime you see such an example.

In which part of the following did I not make that sufficiently clear ?

"I see plenty of examples of poor judgement on the roads from day to day - usually someone making an isolated error which is unlikely to be repeated or continued - and does not warrant calling the police .

The episode I wrote about is something else entirely , believe me , I don't phone 999 lightly and it takes an extreme example of bad driving ( which this was ) before I would do so ."

"999 abusers facing fines for trivial phone calls"

"People who misuse the 999 service are being warned they could face a £80 fine or an antisocial behaviour order"

"A MAN with smelly feet and a woman with period pains who both dialled 999 for help are among those causing problems for the emergency services"

Which tabloid did you trawl that up from ?

"How to report bad driving

If you have been involved in an incident of bad driving which has not ended in a collision, call 0845 8 505 505, or visit a local police station to report the incident.

You will need the following information:

The registration number of the other vehicle.
Details of an independent witness or witnesses.
You also must be prepared to go to court to support proceedings.
Police will decide if there is sufficient evidence of an offence which can be investigated. If further information is needed for an investigation, the complainant will be contacted by a member of the Roads Policing department."

HTH.

That may be policy with your own local force , but not mine .

As for some of the content of the above

"The registration number of the other vehicle." - PROVIDED

"Details of an independent witness or witnesses." - ME , not to mention the CITRAC cameras which cover that stretch of the M8 .

" You also must be prepared to go to court to support proceedings. " - I was , and still am . Contact details given for this purpose .


In the meantime , if you happen to see a lunatic driving the wrong way down a dual carriageway or motorway , feel free to drop by your local station when you get home - if I see the same thing - I WILL DIAL 999

Your failure to exercise due diligence by reporting a clearly urgent matter immediately could easily cost someone's life , you might be comfortable with that , I know I would not .

But then , I regularly deal with the aftermath of serious RTC's , and you don't .

 

[markjay]

I don't know who's right, but you will note that nick mercedes very rarely changes his mind - so rather than having yet another thread where people end-up breaking their keyboards typing responses, perhaps agreeing to disagree would be the best step forward in this case?

And in nick mercedes' defence I would say that without posters like him this place would be boring.

 

[flango]

999 or 121 is the correct course of action for reporting drivers whose behaviour is like to casue harm or injury to members of the Public. It is openly advertised to do so by the forces in this part of the world and numerous drunk and drug drivers have been caught thanks to members of the public calling in dangerous behaviour.

Having worked closely with the emergency services I can tell you your call will be taken seriously and if a traffic car is available it will be sent to the scene immediately, If not the registered keeper will get their collar felt at home later.

Because of such idiots as described by Pontoneer I now have permanent video recording in my daily driver, since fitting it in Feb I have sent around 6 video clips to various forces of driving that is clearly not acceptable and likely to cause harm, I have had 4 replies thanking me for taking the time to make such reports and that they will be followed up.

So if you see very dangerous driving likely to cause harm, call it in.

 

[stevieb15]

I attempted via a 999 call to get the police to take action against what I presumed to be a certifiable maniac on the M1 in South Yorkshire, every bit as erratic and dangerous as the original example.
The response was "why are you bothering us, report it to your local police when you get home and why are you using a mobile whilst you're diving" all delivered with the amount of courtesy and gratitude as you can imagine.
Different standards on both sides of the law in Scotland I suspect!

 

[219]

I attempted via a 999 call to get the police to take action against what I presumed to be a certifiable maniac on the M1 in South Yorkshire, every bit as erratic and dangerous as the original example.
The response was "why are you bothering us, report it to your local police when you get home and why are you using a mobile whilst you're diving" all delivered with the amount of courtesy and gratitude as you can imagine.
Different standards on both sides of the law in Scotland I suspect!

That beggars belief !

Had I got that response , I would have made an official complaint since all 999 calls are recorded . I would expect the operator to be pulled up for it .

Even worse if it transpired that the idiot had caused a crash which might have been prevented by prompt police intervention .

Oh , and there is an exemption within legislation for making 999 calls on a handheld mobile whilst driving if urgent and impracticable to stop - for this very reason .

 

[nick mercedes]

That beggars belief !

Had I got that response , I would have made an official complaint since all 999 calls are recorded . I would expect the operator to be pulled up for it .

That's because 999 is for ***emergencies***.

See this thread for the number to use to report bad driving:

List of Police Non Emergency Contact Numbers - PoliceSpecials.com Forum

I'm not saying that anyone should not report what they consider bad driving, but please don't call 999.

 

[219]

Nick , there is a BIG difference between 'bad' driving which probably is not an emergency , something many of us see on the roads almost every day , and 'DANGEROUS' driving - posing an immediate threat to other road users , something entirely else and seldom seen , - which clearly IS an emergency and does need to be communicated to police without delay to prevent risk of injury or death to others .

No-one is likely to have these non-emergency contact numbers in their phone ( I do have local Police , Fire and Ambulance control room direct numbers , along with direct numbers for quite a few police and fire stations in my phone ) but even then would not distract myself from driving trying to look these numbers up , and will just dial 999 as would any member of the public .

Until a nationwide , three digit , non emergency number is set up , 999 is the most appropriate number for the public to dial in urgent cases .

If it is a crash and a Fire Service attendance is required , I will just call our control room direct since I have the number on speed dial .

Of all three services , the Fire Service is the only one which will automatically notify the other services - so if you need them and any of the others , always call fire service first and they will do the rest .

 

[219]

Oh , and in the Fire Service , we do get calls which could be regarded as 'non emergencies'

eg " little Johnny has got his head stuck in a saucepan/school railings " - hardly life threatening , but it will still be responded to professionally and no one would EVER be told 'why are you bothering us' .

Similarly with people stuck in lifts , on broken down rollercoasters , or the elderly person who has had a fall in their home and needs help - these are all things I have known to have happened recently and all calls are taken seriously .

 

[John]

I guess if you notify the authorities at the time, and don't happen to have a the local number of the Police where are driving at that time, you are hoping they might catch the guy consistently driving like a nob. It's hardly the same as a one off incident.

If you wait until you get home, it's possible an incident could have occurred as a result by then but if not, how likely is it they would do anything about it except pay the guy a visit (if they even bother doing that).

I suppose I'd liken it to someone running fast with a knife in their hand along the street. You haven't seen anything happen necessarily and you don't know anything is not as it should be, but based on what you see I think you'd be right to report it - might turn out to be someone rushing home to cut down someone who might have hanged themselves...

 

[Charles Morgan]

Nick makes a decent point about the abuse of 999 for manifestly non-emergency calls, and obviously, if resources are being tied up and genuine calls not getting through the non-emergency number should be as widely known as 999.

However, reading through the list of numbers and doing some research, each force I looked at had a different policy on use, the numbers are not memorable and in the case of three forces using the 101 number, two have a completely different definition of non-emergency. If you drive regularly through different areas it would certainly complicate life.

I have only ever made three 999 calls in my life - once when the farm next door caught fire, when I had been assaulted and when I had gallstones which I mistook for a heart attack. I see so many examples of dangerous driving that I would quite like an easily memorable number.